Corliss said her brother was the most lovable of the family's five siblings. But his disappearance and death is a mystery that has haunted the tiny western New Hampshire town of Marlow for more than three decades.

The story is the stuff of Hollywood, with alleged death-bed confessions, backhoes digging up bodies and charges of murder filed against the local police chief.

But now, almost 36 years after Russell Bean was reported missing, his killing remains unsolved, and his family is speaking out for the first time, hoping to get the answers that have escaped them and investigators for so long.

"I remember I was at home at the time," said his brother, Allan Bean. "It was the evening. I got a phone call from Doris, and it was very sad moment. It was difficult."

In mid-September 1978, Corliss said she got word from Russell Bean's wife, Sylvia, that he had disappeared.

"There's a description of him, what he was last seen wearing, and there's some investigation at that point, but things really seem to pick up in 1988," said Assistant Attorney General Ben Agati.

That year, Robert Chambers, a friend of Russell Bean, was the part-time police chief in Marlow. He married Russell Bean's wife about a year after he vanished.

In March, just before Chambers was scheduled to graduate from the Police Academy, state police showed up on his property with a search warrant and a backhoe.

"State police called me and asked me if I had heard anything from him, and I got kind of a funny feeling in my stomach, and then shortly thereafter, I heard they were going to dig around Chambers' front yard, and then I knew he was dead and buried," Corliss said.

Authorities said they were operating on a deathbed confession from Chambers' father, Clifton Chambers, that implicated his son in the killing and identified the location of the body.

After three days of digging, Russell Bean's remains were found.

"It was clear that he had been attacked, and that led to his death," Agati said.

A month after the body was found, Robert Chambers was arrested. The case was presented to a grand jury, which failed to return an indictment.

"As far as Mr. Chambers is concerned, the Attorney General's Office presented the case and attempted to have him indicted for murder," said Mark Sisti, Chambers' lawyer. "They presented the case in a fair fashion before the grand jury, and the grand jury said, 'No.' That case is over. It's not a cold case, as far as Mr. Chambers is concerned."

Sisti said the state's case had questionable evidence and unreliable witnesses. He also called the deathbed confession weak.

"There's just nothing there that I can see that's got any strength or any real fingerprint having to do with Mr. Chambers," Sisti said. "Every time you're looking at something in this case, things aren't coupling up."

"The two parts of the crime that we would have to prove at trial are the act of how Russell Bean was injured and by whom, and also the intent of what that person was," Agati said. "Without proof beyond a reasonable doubt of both of those parts of the crime, a case would not be able to move forward through the judicial system."

For the state, the investigation is still open. For the family, the wounds are still fresh.

"We are trying to find the witness that before was afraid to come forward," Agati said. "We're trying to find the witness that was in a relationship with somebody, whoever it may be, and that relationship has disintegrated. They're no longer in fear or they are in a position now where they are older, more confident and can come forward with the information they've been holding onto."

"I knew there was nothing I could do," Corliss said. "The only thing I could do for Russell now is help bring his killer to justice, which didn't happen yet."

"It's a matter of somebody doing the right thing, and sometimes it takes time for the person to be strong enough to do that," Agati said.

Anyone with information that might help the investigation is asked to call the New Hampshire State Police Cold Case Unit at 603-271-2663.

INFORMATION WITH COWORKERS. THE BILL WILL NOW GO TO THE HOUSE. AFTER MORE THAN 30 YEARS OF UNANSWERED QUESTIONS, THE FAMILY OF A HOMICIDE VICTIM BREAKING THEIR SILENCE TONIGHT, RUSSELL BEAN WAS REPORTED MISSING IN 1978 IN MARLOWE, NEW HAMPSHIRE, 10 YEARS LATER HIS BODY WAS FOUND BURIED IN A POLICE CHIEF'S YARD. BUT HOW BEAN DIED AND WHO KILLED HIM IS STILL UNKNOWN. WMUR'S ANDY HERSHBERGER LOOKS INTO MYSTERY IN MARLOWE. I DON'T FEEL THAT JUSTICE WAS DONE. DORIS CORLISS SAYS HER BROTHER RUSSELL DEAN WAS THE MOST LOVEABLE OF THE FIVE SIBLINGS, BUT HIS DISAPPEARANCE AND DEATH IS A MYSTERY THAT HAS HAUNTED THE TINY WESTERN NEW HAMPSHIRE TOWN OF MARLOWE FOR MORE THAN THREE DECADES. THE STORY IS THE STUFF OF HOLLYWOOD, WITH ALLEGED DEATH BED CONFESSIONS, BACKHOES DIGGING UP BODIES, AND CHARGES OF MURDER FILED AGAINST THE LOCAL POLICE CHIEF. BUT NOW ALMOST 36 YEARS AFTER BEAN'S REPORTED MISSING, HIS HOMICIDE REMAINS UNSOLVED, AND HIS FAMILY IS SPEAKING OUT FOR THE FIRST TIME HOPING TO GET THE ANSWERS THAT HAVE ESCAPED THEM AND INVESTIGATORS FOR SO LONG. WELL, I REMEMBER I WAS HOME AT THE TIME, IT WAS THE EVENING, GOT IT A PHONE CALL FROM DORIS, AND WAS A VERY SAD MOMENT. IT WAS DIFFICULT. IN MID SEPTEMBER, 1978, CORLISS SAYS SHE GOT WORD FROM DEAN'S WIFE SILL HAVE A THAT HE HAD DISAPPEARED. THERE'S A DESCRIPTION OF HIM WHEN HE WAS LAST SEEN WEARING, AND THERE'S SOME INVESTIGATION AT THAT POINT, BUT THINGS REALLY SEEMED TO PICK UP IN 1988. IN THAT YEAR ROBERT CHAMBERS IS THE PART-TIME POLICE CHIEF IN MARLOW. HE HAD MARRIED BEAN'S WIFE ABOUT A YEAR AFTER HE HAD VANISHED. IT WAS IN MARCH, JUST BEFORE CHAMBERS WAS SCHEDULED TO GRADUATE FROM THE POLICE ACADEMY, THAT STATE POLICE SHOWED UP ON HIS PROPERTY WITH A SEARCH WARRANT AND A BACKHOE. THE STATE POLICE CALLED ME AND ASKED IF I HEARD ANYTHING FROM HIM. AND I GOT KIND OF A FUNNY FEELING, YOU KNOW, IN MY STOMACH, WHATEVER, AND THEN SHORTLY THERE AFTER I LEARNED THAT THEY WERE GOING TO DIG AROUND CHAMBERS' FRONT YARD. AND THEN I KNEW HE WAS DEAD AND BURIED. AUTHORITIES SAY THEY WERE OPERATING ON AN ALLEGED DEATH BED CONFESSION FROM CHAMBERS' FATHER CLIFFTON THAT IMPLICATED HIS SON IN THE MURDER AND IDENTIFIED THE LOCATION OF THE BODY. AFTER THREE DAYS OF DIGGING, BEAN'S REMAINS WERE FOUND. IT WAS CLEAR THAT HE HAD BEEN ATTACKED, AND THAT THAT HAD LED TO HIS DEATH. A MONTH AFTER THE BODY WAS FOUND, ROBERT CHAMBERS WAS ARRESTED FOR MURDER. AND THE CASE WAS PRESENTED TO THE GRAND JURY, WHO FAILED TO RETURN AN INDICTMENT. AS FAR AS MR. CHAMBERS IS CONCERNED THE ATTORNEY GENERAL'S OFFICE PRESENTED THE CASE, ATTEMPTED TO HAVE HIM INDICTED FOR MURDER. THEY PRESENTED THE CASE IN A FAIR FASHION, BEFORE A GRAND JURY, AND THE GRAND JURY SAID NO. THAT CASE IS OVER, IT'S NOT A COLD CASE AS FAR AS MR. CHAMBERS IS CONCERNED. THE ATTORNEY GENERAL WHO REPRESENTED CHAMBERS SAID THE STATE'S CASE HAD QUESTIONABLE EVIDENCE, UNRELIABLE WITNESSES, AND CALLED THE SO-CALLED DEATH BED CONFESSION WEAK. THIS IS NOTHING THERE THAT I CAN SEE THAT'S GOT ANY STRENGTH OR ANY REAL FINGERPRINT HAVING TO DO WITH MR. CHAMBERS. EVERY TIME YOU'RE LOOKING AT SOMETHING IN IN CASE, THINGS AREN'T COUPLING UP. THE TWO PARTS OF THE CRIME THAT WE WOULD HAVE TO PROVE AT TRIAL ARE NOT ONLY THE ACT OF HOW RUSSELL BEAN WAS INJURED, BY WHOM, AND ALSO THE INTENT OF WHAT THAT PERSON WAS. WITHOUT PROOF BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT OF BOTH OF THOSE PARTS OF THE CRIME, A CASE WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO MOVE FORWARD THROUGH THE JUDICIAL SYSTEM. FOR THE STATE, THE INVESTIGATION IS STILL OPEN. FOR THE FAMILY, THE WOUNDS ARE STILL FRESH. WE ARE TRYING TO FIND THE WITNESS THAT BEFORE WAS AFRAID TO COME FORWARD. WE'RE TRYING TO FIND THE WITNESS THAT WAS IN A RELATIONSHIP WITH SOMEBODY, WHO EVER IT MAY BE, THAT RELATIONSHIP HAS DISINTEGRATED, THEY ARE NO LONGER IN FEAR, THEY'RE OLDER, MORE CONFIDENT, AND COME FORWARD WITH THE INFORMATION THEY'VE BEEN HOLDING ONTO. I KNEW THERE WAS NOTHING I COULD DO. THE ONLY THING I COULD DO FOR RUSSELL NOW IS HELP BRING HIS KILLER TO JUSTICE. WHICH DIDN'T HAPPEN. YET. IT'S A MATTER OF SOMEBODY DOING THE RIGHT THING. AND SOMETIMES IT TAKES TIME FOR THE PERSON TO BE STRONG ENOUGH TO DO THAT. ANYONE WHO MAY HAVE INFORMATION TO HELP THIS INVESTIGATION IS ASKED TO CALL THE NEW HAMPSHIRE STATE POLICE, COLD CASE UNIT,